By Peter Horsman
The Spanish Royal Mint has recently revealed their coin release schedule for the coming year. Included are coins to celebrate the Spanish Presidency of the European Union, Mexquita, Xacobeo 2010, FIFA World Cup, Francisco de Goya, and more. The coins and sets scheduled to be released for each month are detailed below.
January - The year will begin with coins celebrating the Spanish Presidency of the European Union. Every six months a new country is selected to take on the role of EU president, with Spain set to receive this honor from January 2010 to June 2010. There will be a 10 euro silver proof commemorative coin issued in January.
Spain's 2 euro commemorative coin will also be release during the month to pay tribute to the Mezquita, the Roman Catholic cathedral originally built as a Mosque in the Andalusian city of Córdoba.
Finally, the first of the Spanish coin sets will be released in January, with the standard mint set or Brilliant Uncirculated coinage appearing sometime during the month.
February - A 12 euro silver proof coin will be issued to celebrate the Spanish Presidency of the European Union. This coin comes in addition to the 10 euro silver proof issued in the previous month.
The next release in the popular Architecture series will also take place. The latest release will be dedicated to the famous Sagrada Família Temple (Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Família) and the renowned Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí (1852–1926), for which the temple is considered his master-work.
March - The Spanish proof set of coins will be released this month, featuring all 8 circulating euro coins in the highest quality available by the mint. It is believed that a proof version of the 2 euro Mezquita commemorative coin will also be included in the set.
The month will also see the releaes of a 10 euro silver proof coin to celebrate Xacobeo 2010. Año Santo Jacobeo (or in galician language Ano Santo Xacobeo) is the holy year of St. James. It takes place in the year when the 25th of July (day of St. James) is a Sunday. Xacobeo 2010 is born out of a vocation to celebrate the spiritual and cultural essence of the Camino de Santiago, serving as an international showcase for knowledge and the arts.
April - This month will mark the releaes of a 10 euro silver proof and a 100 euro gold proof issued to celebrate the approaching FIFA World Cup held in South Africa between 11 June and 11 July.
May - The series of brilliant uncirculated coin sets dedicated to various Spanish regions and cities will continue in May with two new releases. Each set will contain the 8 circulating euro coins of Spain together with the 2010 2 euro commemorative. The sets this year will be in honor of the central region of La Mancha and the northwest city of León. La Mancha was made famous by Miguel de Cervantes in his book Don Quixote de La Mancha, while Leon has the famed Gothic cathedral Santa María de León.
Additional coins released in May will honor Spanish painter and printmaker Francisco de Goya. He was born in Fuendetodos, Aragón, Spain, in 1746 and is probably best remembered for his 1793–1794 series of 11 small darkly fantastical paintings. The coins honoring the life and work of Goya will be available in 10 euro silver proof, 50 euro silver proof and 200 euro gold proof.
September - After a gap of a few months the mint will release another set of three coins in either silver or gold dedicated to "Ancient Visigothic and Carthaginian coins". It's too early to know what designs will be featured on these coins but they will be available as a 10 euro silver proof, 100 euro gold proof and 25 euro gold proof issues.
October - The coins to be released for 2010 will be a series of "Historical" coins issued in varying denominations. The coins, struck in silver proof quality, will be dedicated to a number of different countries such as Argentina, Cuba, Portugal, Nicaragua, Mexico, Peru, Paraguay and Guatemala, where the Spanish dialect and culture flourish. The coins will be issued in the denominations of each respective country.
